The Cairo Criminal Court postponed to 19 May the Ansar Beit Al-Maqdis trial, in which 213 alleged members are being tried for committing crimes targeting high-profile security personnel.

The defendants are in court on charges of assassinating 54 police officers, the attempted assassination of former interior minister Mohamed Ibrahim and the bombings of security facilities and installations.

Investigations claim the defendants received military training in cooperation with Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Hamas movement.

The prosecution accused the defendants of establishing and joining a “terrorist group”, attacking the rights and freedoms of citizens, as well as espionage with a foreign organisation.

Ansar Beit Al-Maqdis, now known as “State of Sinai”, mainly operates in North Sinai, with a few of their operations taking place in Cairo and other governorates. The armed group claims responsibility for its attacks via their official Twitter account. A noticeable increase in their operations was seen since the ouster of former president Mohamed Morsi in July 2013.

Other “terrorist cells” including the “Al-Zawahri cell”, “Missiles cell”, “Ansar Al-Sharia’ Brigades” and “Ajnad Misr” have been facing trial. The defendants in all cases are charged with killing security officers and illegal possession of weapons among other charges.